Disclaimer: Uh…don't own Shadow Hearts. Don't own all the Yuris that are going to pop up later.
**
Alice stirred as Halley placed her down on the floor where she had slept earlier. She looked at him with watery blue eyes, looking like she was going to start crying again. "Where's Yuri?"
"Keith's got him, but he needs to rest," Halley said. To his dismay, Alice still got up, or at least tried to. When she put her hands against the floor, she cried out in pain and would have fallen if Halley didn't grab her shoulders. "Wait a minute! You burned your hands, remember?"
She had a confused expression as she examined her hands. She didn't remember burning them, and the skin wasn't burnt, just raw.
"Well we weren't going to leave them all toasted," Halley explained, seeing her puzzled expression. He let go of her shoulders but she remained kneeling. "I healed them, but they're probably still sore. It was kind of a rush job. Here, hold your hands out."
Alice held out her hands, palm up, and he put his hands just over them. A soft light gradually lessened the pain until it was just a small tingle in the nerves.
"How's Yuri?" Alice asked. Halley sighed, knowing she had to be worried to death about him.
"We can't tell--You're going to have to see him yourself," he said, helping her stand up. "C'mon, Keith took him downstairs."
Going past the vending machine, Halley and Alice walked down another set of stairs into the basement/library of the house. There, Margarete, Keith, and Zhuzhen were trying to explain what had happened to Koudelka, Roger Bacon, and the other London Rats. Sharon and Koudelka were both examining Yuri, who'd been placed on a hurriedly cleared table; Koudelka was looking at his chest while Sharon waved her hand over Yuri's face, puzzlement plainly written on her face.
Alice ran over to him and then saw what was wrong. In the center of his chest, just a little away from where his heart would be, a spot pulsed with red light to a heartbeat. It wasn't much, but it was enough to tell where the Flare Brooch was. Still inside of him.
"Are you sure he's not dead?" Sharon asked Margarete, looking worried. She waved her hand over his face again, becoming more distressed when she still got no reaction. Yuri's eyes were still half-opened, but they were dull and…lifeless. Alice almost cried again as she realized that he looked like a corpse right now. He would be a corpse, if not for his shallow breathing and, when she felt his wrist, weak heartbeat.
"He's breathing, isn't he?" Margarete pointed out, although she also looked pale. "Damn…the kid sure managed to screw himself up this time-"
"It was her fault!" Alice yelled, shocking herself and everyone else. But she couldn't help it. Something was wrong with Yuri, and no one knew what it was. He was conscious, but his eyes…it was like his mind was somewhere, far away…
"I didn't mean it like that, Alice. I'm sorry," Margarete said, trying to placate the younger woman. She was standing over Yuri, her head bowed, almost like she was mourning. "He'll be alright. I mean, that kid's harder to kill than a cockroach. Remember? He even survived losing to the Seraphic Radiance the first time around."
"Yeah…" Alice said softly. She remembered how worried she'd been when he'd disappeared, even though they had known each other for a few weeks, and when they'd found him in Blue Castle, acting like some kind of monster.
She realized that his eyes then looked kind of the same now…lost and blank.
Everyone was puzzled when her face suddenly lit up. She walked around the table to where Zhuzhen stood, then pushed herself up onto the table and laid down next to Yuri.
"…What are you doing?" Chris asked, confused.
"I'm going to see if he's in the Graveyard," Alice answered.
"Sure you can get there?" Zhuzhen asked.
Alice nodded. "I've already been dragged into the Graveyard once, and I've managed to get there once myself. Wake me up if anything odd happens."
"Define 'odd'," Halley said sardonically.
Alice only shook her head with a little laugh and closed her eyes. After five minutes, she fell asleep, destined for the Graveyard.
**
[Alice's POV]
The Graveyard hadn't changed at all…or at least, that was what I thought as I took my first few steps in. There were the same graves after all, and in the distance I could make out the temple and the other gate, the Gate of Self.
But as I walked forward, I noticed a red glare and turned sharply towards it. I grew worried as I noticed that I didn't have my book with me, but it was only the Fire grave, glowing brightly, almost triumphantly.
I looked at it for a minute, then turned away and continued towards the Gate of Self. All I wanted was to find Yuri and make sure he was fine, not doing something like digging his own grave again.
I shook my head. He wouldn't do something like that for any reason; he had already accepted his weaknesses and chosen to live with them.
But…then why was he like this again? Those blank eyes with no soul…
The Gate of Self opened slowly and I was about to step in when a voice stopped me.
"Searching for the boy? You won't find him there."
**
[Yuri's POV]
I walked alone in absolute darkness.
Pain--magic--darkness. Regina had started some kind of spell, and it had been-so painful. Too painful to bear. Then suddenly, it had stopped, but I was now here. Wherever 'here' was.
Wonder where I am…
"Why wonder?"
I stopped and turned around, looking for who had said that. But what was the point? I wouldn't be able to see them. "Who's there?" I called.
Seconds, minutes, hours seemed to tick by as I waited for an answer, any noise so I could tell where the other person was.
But nothing came. I'm starting to hear things, I thought, looking down. But it had seemed real…
"Look up."
My head snapped back up, and I saw a person standing a little ways off, looking down at his feet, his back to me. Then a second person, the twin of the first. A third-a fourth-a fifth-
There's a million of them… They went as far as I could see, in a line.
"Not a million. Infinite." It was only one voice, but it came from all of them. As one, they lifted their heads and looked at me. He was met with countless faces, all his own. "Hey," I said.
"You're me," I said in surprise.
"You're me. That's right," I said, nodding. He looked puzzled and held a hand up to his forehead. "Confused?"
"As hell," I muttered.
"Tough. It's our own fault we're like this."
"Like what?"
I cast my eyes around at the exact copies of me. "Like this."
I rolled my eyes. "Great. That's just helpful."
"Once again, tough luck," I told him.
"Then how's it my-'our' fault?"
"Right now it's your fault. Then it'll be my fault. Then it'll be his fault," I explained, nodding to the next in line.
"My fault for what?"
"For not ending."
"Ending what?" I demanded. Suddenly I noticed that one of the duplicates farther off had disappeared, and then another one faded away. I felt a strange sensation in my being. How strange. "Is this just a dream?"
I rolled my eyes. "Is this a dream? No, dumbass, it's not. It's what we get for being never-ending." He still looked confused as I disappeared to return to my Graveyard.
**
[Alice's POV]
"So where is Yuri?" I asked the Sword mask.
"Heh heh heh! Inside, of course," he said, turning in midair, obviously pleased. He stopped, facing the temple.
"Will you go, little girl?" Gold mask asked. "Or are you afraid?"
To tell the truth, I was a little afraid, but I had to help Yuri. Besides, Atman was dead. As far as I knew, there was nothing else in there.
As far as I knew. And the masks were gloating. Both were not exactly encouraging.
But I squared my shoulders. The masks didn't seem to be lying. So…if Yuri was in there, I would find him. I stepped in front of the temple doors, seeing them automatically swing open. I took a deep breath and then stepped in.
**
Author's Note: For the shortest and most confusing chapter, chapter 11 takes the cake. I lost sight a few times of what I was trying to write, and I'm sure I'll get at least one confused review. (Not like I'm 100% sure of what I've written ::bonks head against monitor::)
Yuri: There is one benefit to this chapter.
What?
Yuri: (points at Aegis) Chibi-Yuri's, attack!
*Chib-Yuri's swarm around Aegis and completely cover her*
AAAAHHH!
Yuri: Bwahaha! Suffer! Suffer in pain!
They're so KAWAI! (Pops up hugging ten chibi-Yuris)
Yuri: (sweatdrop) You're not supposed to like it, Aegis!
Alice: Oh, chibi-Yuris! How cute! They're so adorable! (Picks one up and hugs him)
Yuri: Do I get a hug?
Alice: (Picks up another one and hugs him) They're so small!
Yuri: Alice?
Regina: How many are there?
(Shrug) I don't know. I guess they're infinite.
Regina: AND ALL FOR ME! (Dives into the pile of chibi-Yuris)
Yuri: I feel so unloved…
**
Reviewers:
Nights Mistress: Yep, Yuri's going to need Alice to help save his butt. And I tried very hard to make Regina psychotic and nasty.
Gutterfiend: About the view-switching, originally this was supposed to be first-person, Yuri's POV all through the story. Then I realized that would cause a few problems, so it changed, but I still wanted to keep some of Yuri's POV (just 'cause first-person is my favorite POV). And Alice's POV got added in mostly for comparison, contrast, and more dreams (I have to stop giving hints in dreams).
Yuri is okay. Right now. No guarantees about later chapters. Physical pain, breakdowns, insanity…anything's open season when it comes to Yuri.
Yuri: Do I get some sort of special compensation for being your muse?
…You get sympathy…
Greyfriars: Well, man-eating dinosaurs are very common in fiction. But having all of them named Bessie? I think that beats some of the things in Shadow Hearts.
Was the chapter really that weird?
Yuri: (glares) Aegis? Since when are brooches being embedded in chests normal?
**
Brief question: does anyone remember what the interior of the 'temple' (where you fight Atman) look like exactly? I'm trying to remember, but I'm not sure…(sweatdrop)
On the plus side, my sis says we'll probably get the PS2 back soon.
On the minus side, my friend still hasn't even started playing Shadow Hearts. (twitches)